Rise And Fall
by Lathan Lover
Summary: Set during seasons 3 & 4. Nathan and Lucas never had a falling out about Dan, Brooke left for California before she became president, Lucas never told Brooke he loved her, and Haley never came back from tour. Warnings for MM Slash, Language & Incest.
1. Introducing Tim Smith

Disclaimer: I do not own the tv show One Tree Hill that this fanfiction is written for, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

A/N: This story was not written by me, however, the author, who wishes to remain anonymous, asked that I post their Lathan stories for them. Enjoy.

--

The sun was shining above the river court brightly as Nathan shot yet another basket and made it. He was waiting for his brother, Lucas, to arrive, so they could talk. Lucas had just moved into Dan's house and Nathan wanted to know why. He had heard about the entire Joules and Keith thing, but Nathan suspected there was something more going on.

"Hey," Lucas yelled, coming down the small hill and across the court. Nathan froze in mid-shot as his brother did so, admiring his golden blonde hair and brillantly blue eyes. Lucas had always been able to take Nathan's breath away, even without realizing it.

As of very recently, with Haley leaving for tour and not returning any of Nathan's phone calls, Nathan had been having weird feelings towards his brother. They had always been there, but now they were starting to surface in startling ways. Every little movement Lucas made, every little touch he gave Nathan sent the younger Scott over the edge. It was extremely hard not to just kiss Lucas every time that happened, but somehow, Nathan managed to restrain himself. The thought of Lucas's rejection of him was much harder to face than just being gay and in love with your brother.

"We need to talk," Nathan said, putting the ball down and walking over to the picnic tables where Lucas now sat. _God, he looks so sexy sitting like that, with his arms leaned back and... got to stop thinking like that_, Nathan inwardly scolded himself. He let none of these feelings or desires show in his face.

"What do you want to talk about?" Lucas asked, putting his hands on his knees and leaning foward. Nathan felt himself shiver despite the heat. _Man... I just want to kiss him,_ he thought desperately.

"Why did you move in with Dan?" Nathan asked bluntly, not wanting to deal with any preamble. Lucas suddenly froze before turning to face the other Scott.

"I told you, I'm doing it for Keith," he said, his dreamy blue eyes giving him away. There was something else going on, something that Lucas wasn't telling Nathan.

"Bull shit," Nathan said, narrowing his eyes at the elder Scott. "Would you mind to tell me the _real_ reason why you moved in with Dan?"

"Joules is working for Dan and I don't want Keith to find out. It wouldn't be fair to him," Lucas said, turning his face away from Nathan. That made Nathan pissed off, because he couldn't stare longingly at his brother's perfect features anymore or tell what he was thinking.

"Right. I've heard _that_ reason."

"It's the only reason."

"Really? Cause I don't think it is."

"I'm really surprised no one has figured it out yet," Lucas muttered, staring out at the river. Turning back to Nathan, he added jokingly, "I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you."

"I'll take that chance," Nathan said, also joking. He admired how easily they fell into a brotherly banter. It just felt so right, like being here with him and talking to him. How Nathan longed to do this every day and so much more!

"Believe me, it's nothing serious," Lucas promised, breaking the teasing mood between them. "I'd tell you if it was."

"Swear on everything you hold dear?" Nathan asked. Lucas nodded, before looking away quickly. He was blushing! Nathan had only seen that blush twice before, and both times around Peyton and Brooke. _That was totally weird,_ Nathan thought, smiling internally. That blush meant so much more to him than it probably was supposed to.

"Anything else you want to talk about or do you just want to play a game of one-on-one?" Lucas asked, changing the subject. He had turned back to looking at Nathan without the younger Scott even noticing.

"What? Sure, we can play a game of one-on-one," Nathan agreed, not wanting to lose the time with his brother. Who knew, maybe he could gather up the courage to tell Lucas he was secretly in love with him.

Two hours later, Lucas was walking up the steps to the cafe, where Peyton was working. Brooke was in California until further notice, while Nathan had to go to work at the pretzel shop in the mall.

Lucas enjoyed the time spent with Peyton, for she was the only one he could really talk to now that Haley was out of town for God knew how long. She was also the only person outside of Haley that knew Lucas was a closet-gay with a crush on his brother.

"Hey, doofus! Watch where you're going!" Peyton yelled just as Lucas ran smack into her. She was carrying a tray full of empty glasses and dishes back to the kitchen, where Deb was working on the lunch hour rush food.

"Shit!" Lucas said as the glass shattered everywhere and they both landed flat on their asses. "I am so sorry, Peyton! Here, let me help you clean it up."

"No!" Peyton shouted, just as Lucas took a rag off of one of the empty table tops and started cleaning it up. "You've done enough already, thanks."

"Oh please, Peyton, don't make me feel bad! I have worked here for the past seventeen years. I think I know how to clean up glass!" he said, putting all the shards of glass on the tray. "There, now you don't have to worry about slicing yourself."

"Thanks so much for your help," Peyton said, putting on a fake British accent as she picked the tray off of the table. "Are all gay people so nice?"

"Only to people they like," Lucas joked, not really caring about the jab to his sexuality. He didn't mind, just as long as she didn't tell anyone.

"I'll take that as a complement," Peyton said, rolling her eyes. Checking the clock on the wall of the cafe, she swore quietly. "Shit! Do you think you could cover for me? Jake's due to call at like any second and I really don't want to miss another one of his phone calls."

"Sure, no problem," Lucas said, smiling at the blonde. "Tell Jake and Jenny Uncle Luke says hi!"

"Will do!" Peyton called over her shoulder as she dashed out of the cafe. Lucas smiled and shook his head, taking the glass filled tray into the back. Deb was there, cooking a cake.

"Did Peyton leave already?" she asked, quickly adding a random ingredient to the bowl of cake mix.

"Yeah, she had to go answer a hone call from Jake. He's calling from Savannah today," Lucas explained, setting the tray of broken glass in the trash. "I said I'd cover for her."

"Okay, that's great!" Deb said, handing him a tray. "Go take orders from table three. Then you can start refilling drinks and taking the food out to the customers."

Lucas groaned internally, before taking the tray and pad and heading out of the kitchen. Only the thought of his brother kept him going through the day. _Two more hours of this torture and I can go and see if he wants to order pizza tonight, _he promised himself.

Nathan was tired and hurting all over as he got into his car to go back to his apartment. He had had an extremely long day at work. His boss had decided that Nathan was his go-to man and had to do everything from cleaning the floors without a mop to making all the pretzels by hand. Life sucked sometimes.

_Buzz. Buzz. _His cell phone vibrated due to an incoming text message. Nathan picked it up off the seat and smiled as the caller id read: _Lucas_. The text read: **Hey Nate. Got pizza and new movie. Am at the apartment. C ya soon! Luke.**

Even in his exhausted state, Nathan was excited about tonight. It would be the first time he was really around Lucas since he had finally admitted it to himself that he way gay... and was in love with his brother.

Lucas checked his watch for the millionth time. He had recieved a text message from Nathan not ten minutes ago, saying that the younger Scott would be home soon. Lucas wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was extremely nervous about tonight. It was going to be their semi-first date, since Lucas had plans to admit to Nathan about his sexuality preference. He just prayed to God that Nathan wouldn't reject him. It would kill him if he did.

A loud voice yelling, "Hey!" made Lucas turn around. Tim Smith, the long lost idiot who used to play on the Raven's basketball team was standing there, looking angry. Tim had left town before Lucas and Nathan had gotten close, so he didn't know about the brothership going on between the blonde and brunette.

"Tim, what are you doing here?" Lucas asked, as the shorter brown haired teen came up the steps. "Aren't you supposed to be at military school?"

"Aren't you supposed to be at the river court with the other rats?" Tim taunted. "Faggot."

That one word made Lucas freeze. _How did he know?_ _Does he know or is he just messing with me? _

The sound of a door slamming pulled Lucas out of his thoughts. His heart skipped a couple of beats as he looked across the sidewalk at his younger brother who was now staring at Tim, a look of shock etched into his face.

"Tim, what are you doing here?" Nathan asked. The estatic look in his blue eyes was enough to send anyone to over the edge. Lucas felt a strain of jealousy that it wasn't directed at him.

"Sheri let me come home for a week and I decided to come over and visit you!" Tim said, also smiling. Gesturing towards Lucas, he added, "That's when I found bozo over here standing there. Is he the new pizza delivery service?"

"Yeah," Nathan said, looking apologetically at Lucas.

That crushed the blonde, more than any punch or any diss at his sexuality. Nathan was rejecting him, before he had the chance to go out with him.

"Here's your pizza," he mumbled, handing it to Tim. As the brown haired teen pulled his wallet out of his pants, Lucas added, "It's a nonprofit orginization. We don't accept tips or payment."

He ignored Nathan's desperate stare as he headed down the sidewalk.

"Luke, wait!" Nathan called. The apartment door slammed shut, signaling Tim's going into the house. Lucas stopped at the stop sign and turned around to face his brother.

"What, Nathan?" he asked, not even bothering to hide the anger in his voice. Sighing, he said, "I get it, Nate. Tim's your best friend. You should hang out with him while he's here."

"Lucas, I don't want to," Nathan protested. "I had no idea he would be here."

"Keep telling yourself that," Lucas muttered. Raising his voice so Nathan could hear him, he said, "Have fun with him. I won't be seeing you."

With that, he turned and started running. He ignored the fact that he hadn't taken his medications this morning, the fact that he had HCM, and the fact tha the was leaving an extremely crushed Nathan in his wake. He was on his way to anywhere but there.


	2. Dead Man Walking

Nathan couldn't believe the nerve of Tim, his former boyfriend and best friend, showing up after nearly a year of absence and expecting everything to be the same. Lucas and Nathan were just starting to get along and now something new had to come in and complicate things. It irked Nathan to no end.

"You okay, Nate?" Tim asked, putting down the controller. They were playing _NBA Live_ on Nathan's playstation and Nathan had just pretty much given the last three games to his friend.

"What? Yeah, I'm fine," Nathan said, brushing off any concern. He was wondering where Lucas was. He hoped the blonde was okay. He had seem extremely upset when he left and Nathan wanted nothing more than to take the other Scott in his arms and kiss all the pain away. But he couldn't do that because of Tim, because of the fact that Lucas didn't know Nathan was in love with him, and because it more than likely wouldn't change anything.

"You seem kind of out of it," TIm commented.

Tim put on a huge 'I'm extremely stupid' front to everyone so he could be the clown of the team and just goof off without any reason why. People expected it from him and he never disappointed. Nathan used to love every inch of the teen, because he was actually extremely intelligent. Tim was also very perceptive, which used to be nice when Nathan didn't want to talk. But now, it was just down right annoying. He didn't want to explain his feelings to this guy. He wanted to go after Lucas.

"I was going to have a nice time by myself with that pizza and then you showed up and ruined it. So yeah, excuse me for being kind of out of it," he snapped angrily, not really caring about Tim's feeling at that point.

"Gee, I see the kind of respect I get," Tim said sarcastically. "I have been gone forever and I just wanted to spend sometime with my boyfriend."

"Ex," Nathan said through gritted teeth. Glaring at Tim, he said, "You are no longer my boyfriend. You gave that up when you left without a word to me or to anyone else. So you can get the hell out of here."

"And if I said I wasn't going anywhere?" Tim asked, his voice extremely seductive as he leaned in and started playing with Nathan's shirt tails. "What would you do?"

"I'd push you off and tell you to get the hell out of my apartment. You are no longer welcome here," Nathan said coldly, shoving Tim away from him and standing up. "It was nice knowing you Tim. Don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out."

"This is about Lucas, isn't it?" Tim demanded, his tone angry as well. Nathan stared at the other brown haired teen, shocked. _How does he know that?_

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Nathan said coolly, hoping his voice wasn't giving him away. Tim gave Nathan a look.

"Right. And I am supposed to believe that when both you two were drooling over each other all night? And the whole nonprofit pizza catering service was a bunch of crap," he said. A realiziation hit him straight in the face. "You two were going to do it tonight!"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Tim!" Nathan yelped, punching his friend on the arm. "And get the hell out of here!"

"Nathan Scott, the fag of Tree Hill," Tim taunted. Getting off the couch, he added, "It's all right, your secret is safe with me."

"Wait!" Nathan said, closing his eyes as Tim got up to go out the door. The other brown haired man turned to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"Stay here tonight. It's the least I can do after what you've done for me in the past," he said, regretting every word. He just wanted to go see Lucas and now he was stuck with Tim. _Could life get any worse?_

"Great! It's Tim Time! Tim is in the house!" the shorter man said, putting his fist through the air. _How in the world could I have ever liked him_? Nathan thought as he pulled a slice of pizza out of the box from the light stand beside the couch and taking a bite. _I just hope my brother is okay._

Lucas finally slowed down and stopped, bending over to try and catch a breath of air. His heart pounded painfully in his chest, making the effort close to impossible. He panted for a few moments, before sucking in a huge breath of oxygen and stood up. The world around him swam horribly and it seemed to be spinning.

"Luke!"

Nathan's voice cut through the fog like a hot knife through butter. Lucas quickly turned around and blanked out his emotions, a trick he had successfully learned how to do while staying at Dan's. Instead of appearing in pain and out of breath, he merely looked winded and angry.

"What do you want, Nathan?"

His voice was slightly breathless and still had an undercurrent of pain in it. This time, the pain wasn't from the HCM. It was from the betrayal he felt at Nathan's actions. Sure, he and his brother were barely good friends, but still, the obvious choice of Tim over him hurt him.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You seemed kind of upset when you left," Nathan said, taking afew hesitant steps forward. Lucas responded by taking a step or two back. Nathan sighed and put up his hands in surrender. "Sorry for asking."

"No, it's okay," Lucas said, inwardly feeling relieved that his brother was here. It was nice, knowing that someone out there actually cared. His mom was in New Zealand chasing after Andy, Keith was somewhere out of touch searching for Emily, Dan was in the hospital, Brooke was in California, Peyton was dealing with her own crisis, and Haley was on tour.

"I'm really sorry about Tim showing up like that," Nathan said, taking another step forward. This time, Lucas didn't back away, but continued to breathe heavily.

"It's okay, Nate, I don't mind," Lucas said, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Don't do that," Nathan pleaded, making the elder Scott's eyes snap open.

"Do what?" he asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly. Nathan looked at him, an unreadable emotion in his beautiful blue eyes.

"Close your eyes," he said, reaching out for Lucas's hand. "I can't see the real you when you do that."

Lucas stayed still. It wasn't volunitary; his chest hurt too much to do much else. He allowed Nathan to come nearer.

"I'm sorry," Lucas whispered, reveling at the closeness between the two of them. He wanted to get nearer, but his heart wouldn't let him, both physically and emotionally. He didn't want to be shunned by Nathan in public and be his secret fuck buddy at the same time. He wanted everything with Nathan.

"It's okay," Nathan murmured, now standing right in front of his brother. "You didn't know."

"Nathan..." Lucas trailed off as Nathan leaned in. The younger Scott's lips were just inches from his own. Lucas longed with all his heart to just close the gap and be swept away in the moment. But his thoughts were an emotional turmoil. If he allowed this, and Nathan took it back tomorrow and spread rumors around the town that Dan Scott's illigetiamate son was gay, then it would horrible. One kiss wasn't worth all that, was it?

"Do you know how long I have wanted this?" Nathan whispered, gently running a hand through Lucas's blonde hair. "How long I have wanted to be with you?"

"I want it to, Nathan," Lucas said, biting his bottom lip. "But the thing is, what about Tim? What about Dan and Deb? What about Brooke, Peyton, and _Haley_?"

He had said the magic word. Nathan broke away, thoroughly disugsted.

"She is no longer my wife," he said angrily. Lucas took another step back, hissing in pain as he did so. His heart hurt worse with each breath he took, and he knew it was only a matter of time before he blacked out.

"Nathan, I have something I need to tell you," he managed to get out. Nathan turned back to him, confusion and anger visible in his face. That softened into a look of pure concern as he saw Lucas. The blonde teen was covered in sweat, and he was breathing heavily.

"Luke, what is it?" he asked. Lucas looked up at him, his face turning pale in the moonlight.

"I haven't been totally honest with you," he admitted, sitting down. It revealed the pressure and pain in his chest. He was worried that he might not get back up.

"Lucas?" Nathan prompted, his voice sounding forced. "What haven't you been 'totally honest' about?"

"My heart," Lucas said, looking away. His voice dropped to a whisper so quiet, Nathan had to strain to hear him. "I have HCM, Nathan."


	3. I Love You Dammit

_"Uhh, it's Nate, Lucas. If you get this call, please, please call me back. We need to talk."_

**Message deleted**.

Lucas deleted what had to be the twentith phone call from Nathan that day alone. He knew he was being childish and stupid hiding out in his room and at the river court like this, but he really couldn't talk to Nathan. Especially after what he had said two weeks ago about the HCM and wanting to be with his brother. How pathetic could one guy get?

_Simply having a fucking summer time,_ Lucas thought to himself, staring up at his ceiling. The familiar Christmas song ran through his head, only with different words. This summer was supposed to be the best one of his life. It was supposed to be him and Haley against the world, hanging out for the final time before they went their seperate ways. That had all gone to pot the moment Haley chose Chris over Tree Hill.

"Hey!"

Peyton's voice startled Lucas out of his thoughts. He sat up and smiled at the curly blonde girl.

"Hi, Peyton."

"Do you have plans to sit on your ass all summer or do you think I can get your help with something?" she asked, plopping on his bed next to him. "Because I really need your help."

"What with?" Lucas asked curiously, eager to do anything to get his mind off of Nathan and his impending doom concerning basketball. There was no way possible that he would be playing next season.

"Well, I need some help with a show going on at TRIC. You know, setting up, making sure everything's perfect and all that," she said. Grinning, she added, "I booked another band for All-Ages Night tonight."

"That's great, Peyton!" Lucas said, trying to sound enthused. He couldn't do it though. He was too depressed about Nathan.

"Just call him back already, sheesh!" Peyton said, rolling her eyes. "Every time I go over there he's pining for you and every time I come over here you're pining for him! Just go and kiss and have hot sweaty man sex already!"

"Uh, Peyton? When's Brooke coming home? Cause you seriously need a reality check," Lucas said, getting slightly defensive. He hated it when she got like this. For some insane desire, Peyton wanted her two ex-lovers to hook up.

"She'll be home tonight," Peyton said, looking extremely happy. "I can't wait! Even Jake's coming home. The entire gang is getting back together again!"

"Except Haley," Lucas said sadly. As much as he hated his best friend for destroying Nathan's heart, he still missed her terribly. It was like a piece of him had gone with her.

"You never know," Peyton said, her tone holding a slight edge to it. Apparently, she hadn't forgiven the singer either. "Stranger things have happened. Who knew that Lucas Scott was gay?"

"Hmph," Lucas growled. "What is it that you need help doing? Cause you're not going to get it this way."

"Oh come off it, Luke! You've been in a funk for the past two weeks. Just get over it all ready! So you have HCM! So you accidentally told Nathan that you wanted to be with him! It's life and it happens!" Peyton said passionately. Lucas stared at her. Usually it was he who was getting fancy with the words.

"Wow," he whispered softly. A teasing note entered his voice as he added, "Who knew?"

"Look who I've been hanging out with lately!" she joked, gesturing at him. "Honestly, can you blame me? Think of what Brooke would be saying right about now."

"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but can I talk to Lucas alone?"

Nathan's voice sounded from the open door, making both blondes jump. Peyton let out a small shriek of joy, before bouncing out of the room, leaving Nathan and Lucas alone.

"That girl gets more and more hyper every day," Lucas commented. "She is totally different than when she was dating you."

"Yeah," Nathan agreed. There was an awkward silence.

"Just kiss and make up already!" Peyton yelled from outside the bedroom. Lucas bit back a laugh and shook his head, while Nathan looked embarrassed.

"Did you mean what you said?" he asked, his voice dropping a couple of levels so Peyton wouldn't hear them.

"About the HCM? Yeah. About being with you, though..." Lucas trailed off, staring out the window.

"What?" Nathan prompted. He willed his brother, his love, to say more. At that point, he didn't care about the HCM. He could deal with that later.

"I'm not sure if I'm going to be enough for you, Nate. You have pretty much everything already. I can't help but wonder why me? Why do you want me?"

"Because I love you, Lucas. I love the way you smile, the way you squint when you read, and when you shoot a basket. I love the way you put others before yourself, even if it means your not getting what you want. I love the way you stand up to people when you believe something and never back down from a fight," Nathan said, looking at Lucas, his eyes full of emotion. "I love you. I shouldn't need a reason why."

"But what about Tim?" Lucas asked, stalling. He wasn't entirely certain anymore if what Nathan feeling was true or not. He knew what he was feeling, but didn't want to be teased mercilessly for the rest of his life for going after it.

"Tim is a lost spark. He was merely a distraction," Nathan said, waving his hand away. He took a step foward and sank to one knee. "Please, Luke, I love you."

"I love you too, Nathan," Lucas said softly. "But I'm not sure if I can be in a relationship with you."

"Why not?" Nathan demanded, hurt by Lucas's refusal.

"Do you know how wrong it is for us to be together, Nathan? It would be like Dan and Keith being together or you and Dan being together. It's incest, Nate! And it also goes against the Bible and everything I've ever learned! You love your brother, but as a brother! Nothing more than that. No sex, no kissing, no intimate relations!"

"So what? We already have the odds stacked against us for being gay in the first place! People in ancient times were murdered for it because it was different. They couldn't understand how much someone could love someone else of the same sex!"

"Normally people aren't brothers when that happens, though, Nate!"

"Why are you so against us?"

"I'm not. I just don't think it's going to work. And I'm not sure about you, but I don't want to be in a relationship full of heartache and what-ifs."

"Aren't you afraid you're going to have those what-ifs if you don't do this?"

"I'm more afraid of what will happen if I do get into this."

"What do you mean?"

"What if this ends badly? What if Dan finds out? What if I have a heart attack and leave you? What if you grow bored with me? What if Haley comes back?"

"What if the world comes to a sudden halt and we all fly off and die, huh?" Nathan retorted. "Luke, you will always be able to find reasons not to do this. But I think you should focus more on what you'd gain if you did do this."

"I'm sorry," Lucas whispered, looking down at his feet. "I'm sorry for lying to you about my HCM. I'm sorry for not thinking this could work."

"Hey, when I first thought of this, I thought hell no. This won't work. I had the same doubts you did, I really did. And then I started thinking about what I would gain from doing this and lose from not doing this," Nathan said. He got off his knees and sat down next to Lucas on the bed. "Luke, I love you. I love you more than I should. It's going to be okay, Luke. I promise."

Lucas merely shrugged. "I guess. But-"

"No what-ifing," Nathan said sternly. Sighing he said, "Why'd you do it? And how?"

"I did it so I wouldn't give up basketball, Nate. I love it too much. It's a large part of who I am. I don't think I could survive without it."

"I don't think you can survive with it," Nathan said darkly, loving the fact that he hadn't needed any more explanation as to what he was talking about. It was just another check mark in their relationship. "Please, Luke, you could die! You nearly had a heart attack two weeks ago!"

"I didn't though, did I?" Lucas said, looking over at Nathan. His beautiful blue eyes weren't angry. Instead, they were full of love and another emotion Nathan couldn't read. "It was all thanks to you that I didn't. I love you, Nathan."

"Enough to be with me?" Nathan asked, his voice, if possible, even softer.

"I'll give it a try," Lucas agreed. Leaning in to where his forehead was touching Nathan's, he added, "I know I'm making the right choice."

Nathan smirked slightly, before closing the final gap between them in a soft kiss.

Outside in the hallway, Peyton whooped with joy. She had purposefully left the bedroom door open so she could hear every word. Her two boys had finally gotten together! It was a happy day in Tree Hill.

Her eye caught a picture laying on Lucas's nightstand from where she was positioned. It was a picture of Brooke and Jake, taken by Peyton when they were all at the river court one day. Her heart leapt in her throat at the sight of them, with Jenny bundled between them. _I miss them so much_, she thought. _I love you so much._


	4. Cautioners

_If I lay here,  
If I just lay here,  
Would you lie with me,  
And just forget the world._

Lucas sat at the bar in TRIC, absentmindedly sipping at his coke. He still couldn't believe that Peyton had gotten Snow Patrol to play at the small club. They were his favorite band.

A rather large pair of hands covered his eye and a voice growled in his ear, "Who is the sexiest man in the house tonight?"

"I don't know... That's a toughy. Maybe my boyfriend, Nathan?" Lucas suggested, smiling as the hands disappeared and Nathan's baby blue eyes came into view. The younger Scott sat at the bar next to Lucas.

"So, how are you liking this?" Nathan asked, motioning towards the band and the entire party. Lucas shrugged, trying to hide how happy he truly was.

"It's great," he said honestly. Looking seductivley over at Nathan, he added, "You know what would make it _perfect_?"

"No, but I can guess!" Nathan said, smirking as Lucas rolled his eyes. Nathan leaned over and kissed Lucas on the lips.

_Let's waste time  
Chasing cars  
Around our heads_

Lucas deepened the kiss ever so slowly, until Nathan was moaning in his motuh.

"Let's get out of here," Lucas whispered as they broke away to breathe. "I know a great place."

"Where?" Nathan asked, his blue eyes darkened with ecstasy.

"Follow me and I'll show you," Lucas said, grinning as he took Nathan's hand and towed him out of the crowded club.

In the distance, standing next to the stage, was Tim, eyeing the blissfully happy couple jealously. _Lucas Scott has to go,_ he thought. _Because there's only room for one man in Nathan's life, and that's **me**_.

Peyton shrieked excitedly as she saw her best friend, Brooke, leaning against the side of the stage. Snow Patrol had just finished their set and Jimmy Eat World was preparing to go on stage. Until then, there was a break and Peyton had seized the oppertunity to go best friend hunting so to speak.

"PEYTON!" Brooke screeched excitedly, throwing her arms around her best friend. The pair hadn't seen each other in over two months. Brooke had flown off to California towards the end of the school year becasue her parents weren't letting her stay with anyone else.

"BROOKE!" Peyton exclaimed, returning the embrace. She felt a contentness she hadn't felt in a long time with Brooke. She used to feel that way wtih Jake and Lucas too. It was right.

"How you've been, P.?" Brooke asked, breaking the hug and looking her best friend over. "You still are skinny as ever."

"And you're still as cheery as ever," Peyton returned sarcastically. "I'm good, Brooke. How about you? Meet any hot guys in Cali?"

"Nah. None of them were the one for me," Brooke said, witsfully looking across the bar to where Lucas was sitting all alone. He was joined a few moments later by Nathan.

"You know that Luke is gay, right?" Peyton asked, just as Nathan and Lucas's lips locked. Brooke stared at them, shocked.

"No, I didn't! When did this happen and why didn't you tell me?" Brooke demanded, turning to her best friend.

"Lucas asked me not to tell anyone and it happened two weeks after you left," Peyton explained. "I kind of knew all along. When he was with me during those two weeks, it was good and all, it just wasn't right."

"Maybe it was because he was dating me at the time?" Brooke suggested dryly, her eyes angry.

"Yeah," Peyton said, trailing off. "Sorry."

"Hey, it's in the past now," Brooke said, waving it off. "So are Nathan and Lucas like together now or what?"

"I guess so," Peyton said, leaning against the stage next to her friend.

"What about Haley?" Brooke asked, knowing that the girl had gone off with Chris Keller to sing on tour. As far as Brooke knew, she hadn't returned yet.

"What about her?" Peyton asked, getting defensive. "It doesn't really matter now, does it? She left, Brooke."

"I know that, I was just wondering if she knew that her ex-husband and her best friend are together," Brooke said. "Sorry for asking."

"Nathan and Lucas are happy now. I don't think even Haley could change that at this point," Peyton said.

"Please welcome, Jimmy Eat World!" the announcer called from up on the stage.

"I guess that's my cue. I'll talk to you later, B. Davis," Peyton yelled over the roar of the music. Brooke waved good-bye as Peyton disappeared into the crowd.

Lucas and Nathan were at the river court, sitting on one of the picnic benches and staring out into the water. They were sitting extremely close and their hands were entwined. Anyone could see that they were obviously together.

"What are you thinking about, Luke?" Nathan asked, turning his gaze from the water to his older brother. The blonde Scott was obviously lost in thought. His blue eyes were distant and hazy. It was what Brooke called his 'brooding look'.

"I'm just thinking about how screwed up my life has gotten recently," Lucas admitted. Nathan looked at him, encouraging him to go on. "A year ago, if you had told me that I would be with my younger brother and have a potentially fatal heart condition and be on the Ravens' basketball team, I would have laughed in your face."

"Things change, Luke," Nathan said, shrugging. "People change as the grow older. Sometimes they leave."

"I'm really sorry about Haley, Nathan. I wish there was something I could say or something I could do to make it go away," Lucas said, leaning his head against Nathan's shoulder. It felt right to the both of them. They were both comforted by the other. Nathan wrapped his arms around his brother's middle, resting his chin on Lucas's blonde hair.

"Just stay with me and don't leave me," Nathan whispered. "That's all I ask."

"I think I can manage that," Lucas murmured, not wanting to break the peacefulness of the moment.

"Well, well. I leave for two months and this is the kind of reunion I get?" an all too familiar voice asked that was loud with disbelief. Nathan let go of Lucas and turned around to face the person.

_The time I would spend with pictures I would not send.  
I watched you go from left to right.  
I followed you all night across my blinds._

"Haley," he said, unable to believe that his ex-wife was now standing in front of him. He thought she was gone for good. She wasn't supposed to come back. That was the deal they had made.

"Lucas, how could you?" Haley demanded, ignoring her former husband for a moment. "I knew you were gay, but hitting on my husband the moment I'm out of town really hurts."

"Leave him alone, Haley. This isn't his fault," Nathan defended. "It's yours for leaving me in the first place!"

Lucas had gotten off the picnic table now and was standing in front of Haley, in between the two ex-lovers.

"Nathan, I love you for trying, but stay out of it," he said, turning his gaze from the brunette he loved to his best friend. "Haley, you left. I thought you were never coming back. You did divorce him. And we didn't get together until last night. We had no idea you were coming back to Tree Hill."

"You should have, Luke!" Haley cried. "You should have known that I love Nathan and that I would always come back for him! That I would always come back for you, Lucas! I could never leave Tree Hill for good. I couldn't. It's my home."

_You'll change your mind come monday and turn your back on me.  
You'll take your steps away with hesitance.  
Take your steps away from me.  
I'm making my peace, making it with distance._

"That might have been true at one point, Hales, but it is no longer. You lost the right to call this place home when you went off with Chris Keller on tour," Lucas said coldly. "You have no friends or family here anymore. You need to leave."

"I'm staying, Lucas. There's nothing you can say or do that will stop me from doing that," Haley said, looking past Lucas to Nathan, who had stayed quiet through the whole exchange.

"Haley," he said, speaking for the first time. "You can't stay here."

Those words hurt Haley more than any slap or threat could. To hear her former husband say that he didn't want her around anymore hurt like hell.

"Then I guess I will go then," she said softly, fighting back tears. Lucas, feeling guilty at once for hurting his best friend, reached out to try and comfort her, but she shook him away. "No, Luke. You've done too much already. I was stupid to come back here."

_Maybe that's a big mistake.  
You know I'm thinking of you.  
I miss you.  
You'll change your mind come monday and turn your back on me.  
You'll take your steps away with hesitance.  
You'll take your steps away from me._

With that, she was gone, disappearing through the trees surrounding the river court. Lucas stood in the middle of the court, uncertain of what to say or do. He no longer had his best friend, the person he could depend on for everything. And it hurt him more than anything ever could or would to hear her say that she thought all this was his fault.

"Luke?" Nathan whispered after nearly an hour of silence. Neither one of them had moved.

"I should go home," Lucas murmured. "My mom will be calling me soon."

"You want me to come with you?" Nathan offered, getting off the picnic table. Lucas shook his head sadly.

"No. I'll call you tomorrow."

__

You'll change your mind come monday and turn your back on me.  
Take your steps away with hesitance.  
Take your steps away from me.


	5. The Rain That Took My Heart Away

It was Nathan's turn to stare idly up at the ceiling. It had been three days since they had run into Haley at the river court and three days since he had heard from Lucas. He hadn't even seen Peyton, which was strange. Of course, he had spotted Brooke across town one day and figured that was the reason why the curly blonde had disappeared.

_Ring... Ring... Ring..._ Nathan's landline went off and he leapt off his bed and grabbed it, not checking to see who was calling.

"Hello?" he said, praying it was Lucas.

_"Nathan, it's Haley. Um, is Lucas over there?"_

"No," Nathan said, his voice growing hard. The last person he wanted to talk to was Haley. That meant he had to reminense the past and listen to her complain that the one guy she loved had turned over to the dark side in her opinion.

_"I haven't seen him since three days ago and I would kind of like to say good-bye to him before I leave today."_

"You're leaving?" Nathan asked, not bothering to hide how relieved he was at that statement.

_"That's what I said, wasn't it?"_ Haley said, irritated. _"Chris told me that the record company would love to have me sign for them. It's so nice that someone actually cares."_

"You know what, Haley? I am really proud of you for accomplishing all of this," Nathan said, cheering inwardly that she wouldn't be around for a while. "I hope you find happiness."

_"I found happiness once,"_ Haley said pointedly through the phone. _"But he took my heart and stomped on it by getting together with my best friend."_

"I'm not going into that anymore, Haley. You left, get over it. Luke and I are now together," Nathan said, his tone frosty. "Now unless you have anything else to say other than complain about what's going on, then I suggest you leave me the hell alone."

Without another word, he hit 'end' on his cell phone and went back to staring out the window. He desperatley wanted to see Lucas, but he wasn't sure of how he should approach the blonde. Lucas had seemed pretty upset three days ago and Nathan wasn't sure if he should go after him or not. It had been three days.

Suddenly, a knock on the door made him look up. Nathan felt his heart do back flips as he saw the gorgeous blonde leaning against the door jam, looking as though he had just stepped out of a pool.

"Hey," Lucas said, smiling nervously. Nathan could barely respond; he was too caught up in Lucas's beautiful smile and handsomly soaked hair. He looked like a Greek god.

"Hi," Nathan managed to get out. He hoped it sounded somewhat normal. He always ended up being extremely tongue-tied when he was around his brother. He knew that Lucas had the same affect on most women as well.

"I'm sorry I haven't been by," Lucas apologized, staying against the door. "I've been in this mood and didn't want to take it out on you. You would have thought I was crazy."

Nathan smiled at this and got off the bed to walk over to Lucas.

"It's okay, Luke," he said, waving off any further apologies. He was now standing right next to Lucas.

"Hey, Nate?" Lucas asked, looking up at the younger with wide, blue eyes that were full of want and desire. Nathan felt chills go down his spine as he looked at Lucas.

"Yeah, Luke?"

In reply, Lucas pressed his lips against Nathan's, gently at first, but getting more and more passoniate as the seconds passed. Nathan responded wildly, taking one arm and pulling Lucas closer to him, while using the other to run through the blonde's soaked hair. Lucas wrapped his own arms around Nathan's neck to deepen the kiss.

Nathan gently began to tug Lucas back to the bed, never beaking the kiss. He turned the elder Scott around and gently pushed him on the bed, breaking the kiss at first to really look at Lucas. The blonde's already perfect lips had become full and swollen after their heated kiss, and his eyes were sparkling in want. He had one arm holding on to Nathan and the other was used to balance his fall on to the bed.

Nathan looked back at those handsome blue eyes that were so much like his own before pushing Lucas backwards with one hand and attacking his lips with his own. Lucas squirmed underneath him to get more comfortable on the bed in Nathan's arms, before returning the kiss passionatley.

Nathan's free hand began to undo Lucas's button up shirt. Lucas removed his hands from Nathan's neck and began to work on Nathan's own shirt. Soon, both boys were topless. Nathan broke away from the kiss to study his brother's perfect body.

"God, you're so beautiful," he murmured, taking in Lucas's finely chisled chest, leading down to a well musculed and tanned stomach which ended abruptly at the waistband of his jeans. He eyed the clothing article dubiously for a moment, before returning to stare at Lucas's top half for a while. He drank in the sight of Lucas's nipples that were now hardening in the cold air. Nathan longed to touch them, but wasn't sure if Lucas would be okay with that.

'Give me your hand," Lucas said softly, his voice husky with desire. Nathan obliged willing, placing his hand in Lucas's. Lucas led Nathan's hand to his chest and placed it gently on top of his left nipple. Nathan felt a shiver of delight go through him as he understood what Lucas wanted. He gently began to massage the tender body part, hearing Lucas's pleased moan escape from those perfect lips.

Nathan stopped his ministrations for a moment, much to Lucas's displeasure, before moving his lips from Lucas's own to Lucas's chest. Lucas let out another groan of pleasure as Nathan used his tongue to play with Lucas's left nipple, using his hand to play with the other. Lucas arched himself backwards against the pillows as Nathan licked him gently from his left nipple to his navel.

"You have no idea how good you taste," Nathan murmured, placing a hand on Lucas's chest and leaning up to kiss him again. Lucas returned the kiss with vigor again. Nathan moaned into his brother's mouth, wanting this kiss to never end.

"I love you so much, Nathan," Lucas said, gasping for air as they broke apart again. Nathan left a trail of kisses down Lucas's neck, making the elder squirm in delight. Nathan knew what he was going to do next; he just hoped Lucas would allow him.

Slowly, but surely, Nathan began to slide one hand down Lucas's side to the waistband of his jeans. Lucas bit his lip and nodded, much to his brother's pleasure. Nathan slowly removed his other hand from Lucas's left nipple and went to work unzipping Lucas's jeans. The item in question was quickly discarded, leaving Lucas only in his boxers.

"God, Luke," Nathan whispered, seeing Lucas's erection inside his boxers.

"Can I?" Lucas asked, his voice faint with embarrassment as he motioned with one hand towards Nathan's own sweatpants. Nathan nodded, allowing Lucas to slide the material off of his legs and toss it aside.

"Luke..." Nathan murmured, not knowing what else to say. Lucas smirked slightly, before attacking Nathan's lips with his own. Nathan moaned against him, reveling in the pleasure Lucas gave him.

"Oh my god!"

Deb's voice was high with shock and disbelief. Nathan and Lucas quickly broke away from each other. Lucas slid off the bed, scrambling to find his shirt and jeans, while Nathan merely buried himself under the covers of his bed. He heard Lucas murmur something that sounded like an apology to Deb, before he quickly left. Nathan was left alone with his mother.

Lucas walked quickly down the stairs and headed towards the nearest exit before the screaming started. He couldn't believe what had just happened. Nathan was about to give him more pleasure then he had ever had in his life and then Deb walked in. How awkward could things get? No one was supposed to know about Lucas and Nathan, except for Peyton, Brooke, Haley, and possibly Jake. The last person on earth they wanted to find out was Dan. If Deb knew, it was only a matter of time before Dan did.

Lucas was so lost in thought that he didn't hear the car coming towards him until it was too late. With a screech, the car tried to stop, but the tires wouldn't grip the road enough to stop suddenly. Lucas let out a yell of pain as he felt his body and the car collide. He saw stars and then felt the rain beat down on him. There was another screech and the car was gone, leaving Lucas alone in the rain, gravely injured.


End file.
